Montevideo is a city and the county seat of Chippewa County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 5,398 at the 2020 census. The area around Montevideo was populated by Native Americans and fur traders during the first half of the 19th Century. After the Dakota War of 1862, the US government opened the area to homesteaders. Railroads were built, and settlers followed, including Civil War veterans, Norwegians, Germans, Swedes, Dutch, and Irish. Montevideo was incorporated in 1879.